This text represents the culmination of decades of Dr Hughes’ commitment, research, exploration and deeply held belief that young people need a sense of purpose if they are to lead lives of dignity and meaning. As schools and educators grapple with how to better support young people, this advice is a valuable guide, provocation and context for action.
– Elisabeth Lenders, Principal, Kingswood College, Box Hill.

At a time when the value of religion and religious education is increasingly questioned in Australia, Philip Hughes’ new book takes a fresh and different approach to religious education and how schools can contribute positively to the future lives of their students. After examining the evidence about the effectiveness of existing approaches and strategies, he proposes what might be a more realistic, creative and fruitful path for schools to take in helping students develop purpose in life. I found this a stimulating discussion.

Philip Hughes has once again demonstrated his mastery of the field of religious education across a range of Christian faith traditions. In this book, he draws on his vast experience of survey and interview research with many thousands of students from Catholic, Independent and other schools around Australia to propose a very thoughtful and comprehensive approach to education that assists young people to develop a sense of purpose in life. In what Pope Francis has called a change of era, and not simply an era of change, all faith-based schools, indeed, all teachers in those schools, will do well to avail themselves of Dr Hughes’ wisdom and insight.

Dr Philip Hughes has spent most of his life in research on the spiritual and religious dimensions of culture and their expression in both religious organisations and schools. For 31 years, he was the senior research officer of the Christian Research Association. He also worked for 11 years at Edith Cowan University, and is an honorary Research Fellow with the University of Divinity and the Catholic Pastoral Research Office. He is now the chief supervisor for post-graduate research at Harvest Bible College. For 30 years, he has served on school councils, and for 10 years chaired the Council of Kingswood College, Box Hill. Philip Hughes has written more than 60 books and hundreds of articles.

Some Notes about ReligiousIdentification in 2016 Census
The overall picture of the religious identity that is given by the 2016 Census is significantly different from the picture just 5 years ago in 2011 as shown in Table 1. However, it confirms the trends that were evident in earlier censuses.

‘No Religion’ in the Australian Census
More than 7 million Australians ticked ‘no religion’ on the Census form in 2016, compared with just 3.7 million in 2006. The numbers saying they had ‘no religion’ almost doubled in that ten year period. The proportion of the Australian population describing themselves as having no religion rose from just 18.8 per cent to 2006 to 30.1 per cent in 2016. What is the reason behind this very considerable change in a short period of time in the Australian religious/non-religious profile?

Some Notes from the Conference of the International Society for the Sociology of Religion 2017
The conference of the International Society for the Sociology of Religion (ISSR) was held at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland between 4th and 7th July 2017. It was attended by more than 500 people from around the world, most of whom presented papers. This meant there was an enormous choice of papers. Apart from the major plenary sessions which were held each day, there were often fifteen or more papers being given simultaneously on a wide range of topics. Any one individual could only attend a small selection of what was on offer. The following are my notes on one of the major theme of the conference: the pluralisation of religion and responses to it.

Refugees, theology and the social sciences
A review of The Refugee Crisis and Religion: Secularism, Security and Hospitality in Question edited by Luca Mavelli and Erin K. Wilson (Rowman & Littlefield) 2016 ISBN 978-1- 7834-8895-7

This edition of Pointers looks at the issue of mental health and wellbeing amongst people involved in ministry positions within the Christian Church. Burnout is a serious condition that can affect members of the clergy and is often the cause of people leaving ministry. Church leaders face unique challenges in their daily ministry and the varied demands on their time can lead to physical and emotional exhaustion. Moreover there is an expectation that their life and example should be a model to others and this brings a degree of scrutiny that may not apply to other professionals. These and other factors can result in anxiety and depression and in many cases lead to burnout. Research suggests that having a strong reliance on spiritual resources will act as a buffer to the stressors experienced in pastoral ministry; these are discussed in brief in the paper by Dr. Wilma Gallet, entitled, ‘Drawing sustenance from a strong sense of calling’. Dr. Tom Edwards provides an overview of the various aspects of burnout and outlines helpful ideas to assist members of the clergy in managing their personal health and wellbeing in the paper entitled ‘Clergy wellbeing: Strategies for the prevention and management of burnout’. In his paper entitled, ‘Passion and Sustainable Ministry’, Rev. Dr. Nigel Pegram discusses the distinctions between harmonious passion and obsessive passion. Harmonious passion will ensure an energised ministry whereas an obsessive passion can have a damaging effect on relationships and negatively impact physical, mental and even spiritual health. In ‘Falling Apart in Christian Ministry’, Pastor Bob Field shares his very raw and personal experience of burnout and recovery. Finally, in his tribute to the late Rev Dr Ken Dempsey, Dr. Philip Hughes refers to some of the conflicts that can arise in the life of the church.

Pointers Vol 27 no.1

INSIDE THIS ISSUE:

‘Alternative Facts’ and the Tensions between the Social Sciences and TheologyA war of words has broken out between the Trump administration and the mainstream media in the USA over ‘alternative facts’. The initial issue was the size of the crowds at the inauguration. The mainstream media reported that there were fewer people at Trump’s inauguration than at Obama’s. Their evidence was that 782,000 people had used the Washington Metro system on the day of Obama’s inauguration compared with 570,557 on the day of Trump’s inauguration. Mr Spicer, Trump’s new press secretary, said that 420,000 had used the Metro system on the day of Trump’s inauguration, compared with 317,000 on the day of Obama’s inauguration. The senior White House adviser, Kellyanne Conway, appeared on ‘Meet the Press’ a day later and asserted that Mr Spicer’s figures were simply ‘alternative facts’ (Fandos 2017).

Practical Theology and Contemporary Social Issues
As people of faith, our theology should be evident in our daily lives and in particular should inform our response to contemporary social issues, including those issues that evoke controversy because of their seemingly political nature. There are some Christians who argue that church leaders should not be intervening in the political arena, strongly asserting that politics is the sole domain of elected officials. While it is safe to assume that church leaders from most denominations respect the legitimate role of government. Nonetheless scripture exhorts Christians and Christian leaders to make the church’s prophetic voice known, particularly in matters of injustice. This includes challenging unjust laws and structures that oppress the poor and marginalised. The words of the Old Testament prophets and the teachings of Jesus make clear God’s concern for the poor, the widow, the orphan and the stranger. This paper uses a practical theology lens to examine how the Christian church in general is responding to one of the more critical social issues affecting humanity: how we deal with the mass migration of people and, in particular, refugees who are fleeing persecution and conflict.

Networking, Community and Youth Ministry:The Role of Youth Ministry in an Age of Networks
In the December 2016 edition of Pointers, Wilma Gallet discussed the role which local churches should play in the building up of community (Gallet, 2016). Within youth ministry, local churches provide an important gathering space for young people to experience community. However, in this ‘digital’ age one must also ask further questions in the world: Do youth ministry programs provide true community or simply just provide a space for young people to gather? Can those who connect using alternative network offerings, such as digital technologies, share in community, or can community only happen when we gather together? What is the role of youth ministry in an age where networks are created in very different ways to previous generations?

What it Takes to be Truly One of usIn response to the increasing mass migration of people across the globe, Pew Research recently undertook a study of 14 countries focusing on how people view the issue of national identity. The study found that relatively few of those interviewed said that national identity is strongly tied to place of birth. Australia was one of six countries where less than 26 per cent of those surveyed felt that in order to truly claim national identity a person had to be born in that country.

Re-imagining Religion and Belief for Public Policyand PracticeA joint Arts and Humanities Research Council funded project in the UK, involving the Centre for Faiths and Public Policy at the University of Chester, and the Faiths and Civil Society Unit at Goldsmiths University of London, should be of interest to Australian researchers inquiring into the role of churches and other religious traditions in public life in Australia. The project
Re-imagining Religion and Belief for Public Policy and Political Regeneration has received substantial funding from the relevant tertiary funding body in the UK, in strong contrast to the lack of interest in funding research in this field in Australia. Given that we can’t get funding here for highly relevant research I would suggest that we should make connections with this project to get what benefit we can from its work. This is something that the Public and Contextual Theology (PACT) program at Charles Sturt University might be well placed to explore.

Domestic Violence and the Church Community
It is now 12 months since the Victorian Royal Commission into Family Violence (RCFV) released its final report. Chapter 29 of the Report is entitled Faith Communities and provides an overview of the importance of faith communities in providing support to women who experience violence. While being part of a faith community can be a great strength, there are also instances where an inappropriate or lack of response from faith leaders and other members of the faith community can do much damage and harm. There have been instances where woman have been disbelieved or blamed for the abuse they are experiencing. There have been many times where a woman’s effort to seek help has been turned back on her and the only advice given is ‘to be a better wife’ or to ‘not provoke her husband’. There are countless reports of this occurring in many denominations and church leaders need to examine their doctrines to ensure that these do not present a barrier to women seeking help.